Fulham made 11 changes from the side that started the 2-1 Premier League win over Leicester last Saturday
Former Birmingham loan signing Jay Stansfield scored against his old club to help much-changed Fulham reach the third round of the Carabao Cup.
League One club Birmingham were hoping to produce a surprise in front of their own fans at but Fulham, who made 11 changes from the side that started last Saturday's Premier League win over Leicester, were 2-0 up after 15 minutes.
Mexico forward Raul Jimenez opened the scoring with a ninth-minute penalty after Tom Cairney's goalbound shot was handled by Alex Cochrane.
Birmingham, who won this competition as recently as 2011, fell further behind through 21-year-old Stansfield's smart curling finish which he refused to celebrate out of respect to his former club.
To their credit, Birmingham did not fold and almost pulled a goal back through Keshi Anderson's header but Timothy Castagne made a terrific clearance off the line before Willum Thor Willumsson hit the bar from a free-kick.
"I'm almost 100% sure that he's going to be our player but I cannot guarantee that because it's difficult to control the market," said Silva when asked about Stansfield's future after the game.
"The plan for him is to be part of our squad. It's really tough to be part of the 11 in the Premier League, but he's ready to fight for it."
Fulham show strength in depth
Fulham boss Silva has placed the EFL Cup among his top priorities again after steering his side to last season's semi-finals, where they were beaten by eventual winners Liverpool.
He opted to make 11 changes, with summer arrivals Ryan Sessegnon, Jorge Cuenca, Sander Berge and Joachim Andersen among the starters.
Despite the wholesale changes, the Premier League club had too much quality for their opponents.
Birmingham fans know all about Stansfield, who scored 13 times on a season-long loan in 2023-24 but could not save them from being relegated from the Championship.
His fine finish after Jimenez's first goal of the season left Birmingham with too much to do, although the hosts showed plenty of spirit as Fulham survived a couple of scares.
But it was job done for Silva's side, who will discover their third-round opponents on Wednesday.
Player of the match
After the opportunity to rate players has closed, the score displayed represents the average from all the submissions by BBC Sport users.
